POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – A horrific episode of animal cruelty shocked a quiet neighborhood here yesterday when a 79-year-old woman was apprehended for setting a live cat ablaze in her backyard. Local law enforcement responded to a disturbed call regarding smoke and flames emanating from Elgathe Celestin's residence, located on the 1600 block of Northeast 33rd Street.
A witness, choosing to remain unnamed, conveyed the harrowing sight to CBS News Miami, "There was a cat inside of a trap and she was burning the cat alive." The grisly discovery behind the fence prompted the neighbor to notify authorities, revealing Celestin intensifying the flames even as the cat thrashed in pain.
Upon law enforcement's arrival, they detained Celestin, charging her with aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony in the state of Florida. Residents in the vicinity expressed their dismay to reporters. Kristina Mejia conveyed to CBS News Miami about disturbing noises she heard the night prior, mistaking them for an infant's cries, which she now suspects might have been cats.
The eyewitness told authorities, while smothered in disbelief, that the cat was initially thought to be deceased. "Then, she stoked the fire and the cat started moving around again," he described in a statement. Due to the severe burns sustained, the cat was eventually euthanized, officials reported. When questioned by the police, Celestin's motives were unclear – "What are you doing?" law enforcement officers repeatedly asked, but to no clear answer, Local 10 News reported.
Conversations with neighbors unearthed Celestin's apparently kind demeanor, with one neighbor relating to Local 10 News that she "smelled what she thought was dead animals for over a year," casting a grim shadow over Celestin's friendly persona. Her son, briefly speaking to reporters, could offer no explanation, stating, "I have no idea. I don't know what happened." If convicted, Celestin could face up to five years in prison.
